by Terry Henner
Head of Outreach Services
Savitt Medical Library
University of Nevada School of Medicine
Reno, NV

High on a hilltop far removed from possible floodwaters and equipped with its own electrical generators, redundant communications systems, and network servers stands the Washoe County Regional Emergency Operations Center (REOC). The REOC is the command center that manages responses to major disasters and emergencies in Washoe County of northern Nevada. Given the potential in the area for floods, earthquakes, wildfires, and exposure to hazardous materials, it serves a vital function in managing disasters of all kinds and ensuring that first responders have the necessary tools and information they need to successfully mitigate loss. Over 50 different agencies are involved at the REOC, ranging from the school district, Regional Transportation Commission, Red Cross, Salvation Army, Fire Department, Police Department, utility companies, hospitals, district health departments, ambulance companies and more. In 2015 the Savitt Medical Library of the University of Nevada, Reno, School of Medicine was supported by the NN/LM PSR through an Express Outreach Award to improve the capacity of first responders in determining situational status, coordinating response strategies and activities, and in making critical decisions during emergency and disaster situations. (more…)

In January of 2015 NIH Director Francis Collins, MD, formed a working group of the Advisory Committee to the NIH Director (ACD) for the purpose of reviewing the programs of the NLM and making recommendations for a vision for the library that would ensure its continued role as an international leader in biomedical and health information. In carrying out its charge, the working group issued a Request for Information (RFI) soliciting public input regarding NLM. The RFI was active from February 13 to March 13, 2015, with 650 respondents providing feedback. At NLM’s September 17, 2015, Board of Regents meeting, Dr. Barbara Rapp, Chief, Office of Planning and Analysis, summarized the responses to the NIH RFI. She found that comments were submitted from across the broad range of NLM users, including medical librarians; researchers in biomedicine, biomedical informatics and computational biology; clinical, public health, and emergency response practitioners; historians; health information technology developers; journal publishers; and educators. (more…)

For the fifth year, NLM has funded projects for partnerships between libraries and organizations that have disaster-related responsibilities. The partnerships will work together to improve use of disaster medicine and public health information by librarians, health professionals, first responders, emergency planners, and others responsible for disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. Projects will increase the use of high-quality online resources on disaster topics including those from the National Library of Medicine. (more…)

As mentioned in a recent Latitudes article, September is National Preparedness Month (NPM). Preparation and planning will provide the best chance of more positive outcomes after a disaster, but the library can also have great impact during an emergency or disaster event. The library can be a source of relevant and timely information, and may even be called upon to be a safe haven. Uncertainty about how to respond or delays in action can be avoided by having knowledge and tools in place ahead of time for immediate response. Today we have tools and resources that we hope we never have to use, but knowing about them in advance is key. (more…)

September is National Preparedness Month (NPM), and the Great American Shakeout is just around the corner after that. Is your library prepared for a disaster or emergency? Taking steps to prepare for emergencies has clear benefits; it helps reduce fear and anxiety beforehand and can reduce or avoid losses and devastating impacts associated with the event. (more…)

Four outstanding projects were funded in response to the 2015-16 Request for Proposals: Express Outreach/Training/Technology Awards. These projects will be funded for $9,000 each, for a period of 12 months, beginning May 1, 2015. The projects strive to improve access to health information for health professionals and health consumers, and to promote the awareness and use of products and services available from the NLM and the NN/LM. (more…)

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) has announced a funding opportunity for small projects to improve access to disaster medicine and public health information for health care professionals, first responders, and others who play a role in health-related disaster preparedness, response and recovery. The solicitation notice can be found on FedBizOpps.gov. Contract awards will be offered for a minimum of $15,000 to a maximum of $30,000 each for a one-year project. The proposal submission deadline is Monday, July 6, 2015, at 12:00 PM EDT. Visit NLM’s Disaster Information Management Research Center web site for additional information and instructions about the Disaster Health Information Outreach and Collaboration Project 2015. (more…)

For the fourth year, NLM has funded projects for partnerships between libraries and organizations that have disaster-related responsibilities. The partnerships will work together to improve use of disaster medicine and public health information by librarians, health professionals, first responders, emergency planners, and others responsible for disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. Projects will increase the use of high-quality online resources on disaster topics including those from the National Library of Medicine. (more…)

Several resources from the National Library of Medicine are widely known and heavily used by librarians, clinicians, researchers and members of the public. The list includes PubMed, MedlinePlus, ClinicalTrials.gov, and other useful resources which are accessed by users daily. However, there are NLM resources that are less known, but perhaps of far greater significance and benefit in times of emergency situations. REMM is one of those resources. REMM, Radiation Emergency Medical Management, is a web-based resource to provide guidance for health care providers and first responders about clinical diagnosis and treatment of radiation injury during radiological and nuclear emergencies. REMM aims to provide just-in-time, evidence-based information to users by providing sufficient background and context to make complex issues understandable to those without formal radiation medicine expertise. (more…)

During my four years working at the UCLA Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library, I have gradually increased my involvement with the Department of Nursing, with the goal of becoming an embedded librarian. I currently participate within nursing research committees and Magnet councils and my next step toward embeddedness is to join nurses in a clinical setting. However, the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center has strict guidelines on who can participate in a clinical setting, which requires certification. A nursing colleague suggested that I enroll in the Emergency Medical Technician course to meet these requirements, and upon completion, provided an invitation to round with her unit. (more…)